CURTAINS UP ACTING STUDIO
Simplified
Creative Dramatics Curriculum

The instructions and videos contained in this curriculum are designed to help people with or without theater training successfully teach creative dramatics to young people ages 8-13. The free course covers nine core acting concepts and concludes with a simple workshop performance. You can decide the number of lessons you want to spend on each concept, and the length of time you want each lesson to last.

basic lesson plan:

1. Warmups - Start each lesson with a 5-15 minute warmup period. Focus on learning names, group building, and energizing the group.

2. Content - Spend the middle of the lesson leading your students in 3 - 6 theater exercises that explore one of the nine core concepts listed below.

3. Closing - Spend the final 10-15 minutes of each lesson playing a fun group game the students especially enjoy.

You can find all the necessary exercises for warmups and core concepts by browsing:
Curtains Up Theater Games Encyclopedia Organized by Core Concept.

NOTE: Many theater games and exercises can be used to teach more than one concept. For example, in one lesson you might use a one game to explore the concept of “body awareness.,” and then in a later lesson use the same game to explore the concept of “teamwork.” Your job as a teacher will be to emphasize the specific concept being taught as the students play the game.

When you feel your students are ready, you can rehearse and perform a short program for parents and families entitled, The Amazing Imagination Machine. Resources for that show can be found by following the links below:

For a detailed explanation of what students should learn for each core concept, see the Core Concept Details page:

Core Concept details

NINE CORE ACTING CONCEPTS:

1) DEVELOPING YOUR INSTRUMENT: Body awareness and vocal projection
2) STAGE TECHNIQUE: Moving and standing on stage, and stage conventions
3) CONCENTRATION: Focus, listening and responding
4) COMMITMENT: Making bold choices and performing with energy
5) TEAMWORK: Working as an ensemble
6) CHARACTER: Creating believable and interesting characters
7) MOTIVATION: Moving and speaking with purpose
8) STORY: Learning how to recognize and create narratives with a beginning, a middle and an end
9) IMAGINATION: Making creative choices

 
 
 

Curtains Up Curriculum by Friends of the Groom Theater Co. is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Curtains Up is a training program designed for young actors sponsored by Friends of the Groom Theater Company.
It is available to the general public for free under the terms of the Creative Commons License above.

TO REACH THE FRIENDS OF THE GROOM WEBSITE, CLICK ON THE LOGO BELOW.